Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to urge my colleagues to support H.R. 4362, the Stopping Tax Offenders and Prosecuting Identity Theft Act of 2012, or simply the STOP Identity Theft Act. Many of you have seen the recent headlines calling attention to the escalating nationwide epidemic of tax return identity theft. An unsuspecting taxpayer goes to file their tax return only to be told by the Internal Revenue Service that someone else has already filed and claimed their hard-earned tax refund. This happened to one of my constituents, Joan Rubenstein, who was a 64-year-old teacher. When her accountant filed her 2010 tax return in April of last year, he was told by the IRS that she had already filed. Joan followed advice and filed a police report and reached out to the IRS. But after 10 months, she still had not received her refund. Only after working with my district office were we able secure her refund, which she desperately needed to assist her daughter with her student loan payments. For her 2011 tax return, Joan was informed by the IRS taxpayer advocates office that she was okay to proceed with filing her return this year. Yet, shockingly, Joan's accountant filed only to learn that she was once again a victim of tax return identity theft for a second year in a row. No one should have to go through the trauma of having their hard- earned tax refund stolen, and certainly not 2 years in a row. And Joan is not alone. This case, unfortunately, is not an anomaly.…”